november & december 2007

36] Ring master Director Sergei Eisenstein used the tricks of the circus to captivate the crowds, says Owen Hatherley

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34] Shock waves Ted Nield on the science that shifts the world

columNs 7] Diary Carrie Quinlan on the secular joys of Christmas 13] Thinkers Shirley Dent on William Blake 31] Mahmoud’s Gaff Exclusive extracts from the Iranian President’s blog, with translation by Peyvand Khorsandi

book Reviews 40] Michael Binyon reviews a horrific memoir from the Chechen wars 41] Jonathan Derbyshire on Harold Bloom’s angels 42] Daniel Miller gets to grips with nihilism 43] Toby Saul on how blasphemy changed the way we think 44] Andrew Mueller takes on Sixties counter-culture 44] Bill Thompson enjoys an introduction to quantum physics

CONTRIBUTORS

Carrie Quinlan‘s diary appears on page 7. A writer, comedian and actor, she is best known for her appearances on Radio 4’s Now Show and Personality Test.

John Harris is Professor of Bioethics at the University of Manchester and author of Enhancing Evolution (Princeton). On page 20 he argues why we have a moral duty to genetically enhance human beings.

Journalist Edna Fernandes travelled extensively while researching her book Holy Warriors: A Journey into the Heart of Indian Fundamentalism (Portobello). On page 10 she takes us inside the ultra-conservative Deobandi madrassa.

Peyvand Khorsandi is the son of the exiled Iranian satirist Hadi Khorsandi and has written for the Financial Times, Big Issue and Iranian. com. He has been kind enough to translate extracts from Mahmoud’s Gaff, the official blog of Iranian President Ahmadinejad, which appear on page 31.

Ebenezer Obadare writes about the rise of religious fundamentalism on Nigerian campuses on page 32. He experienced this first-hand while teaching in the country in the mid-’90s. He is now an assistant professor in the Department of Sociology at the University of Kansas.

NOvEMBER DECEMBER 2007 New Humanist 5